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Whitehall
Michael Whitehall Whitehall is the Paladin defender of Light's Hope Chapel and main protector of the Chapel and what lies beneath. He has defended the Chapel successfully each time the Scourge has attempted to take it, explaining that he believes he is a funnel for the Light's desire to protect the Chapel's contents. Biography Early Life Whitehall was born in Brill, Tirisfal in 28 BDP (Before the Dark Portal). His family was an upper middle class family which had a long legacy of Knights which served in the Order of Fenris. His father took him as a Squire at 10 years of age. During his squirehood he resided at Fenris Keep and trained alongside Xion Hearthem and Araxamas Terimidias, the son of the Lord of the Keep and the Order. Whitehall always respected the traditions of the Knights but was always deepfully faithful in the Light as his father had been. He would complete his squirehood at 18 and be inducted into the Order at 10 BDP, shortly after his father passed away after a confrontation with Tirisfal's infamous Blue Bandits gang. The Second War When Alonsus Faol approached the Order of Fenris inviting them to convert and join the newly formed Order of the Silver Hand, it threw the Knights into conflict. The choice was between tradition and faith, and for Whitehall it came easy to choose his strong faith over the out-dated traditions of the Knights. He voted to join the Silver Hand much to his close friend, Araxamas's dissaproval. Araxamas would lead the Knights who wanted to stay to their tradition, while his father and current Lord, Maelan, opted to join the Silver Hand. The dispute was settled in a duel between Araxamas and Maelan, with Araxamas emerging victorious. Now Lord of Fenris Isle and Knightlord of the Order, Araxamas's first action was to banish all who had stood against him, including Whitehall, from the Island and the Order of Fenris, where they would go on to join The Silver Hand. Whitehall desperately tried to convince his close friend to revoke the banishment but Araxamas declined and their friendship was over. During the Second War, Whitehall participated in various battles including Hillsbrad and Capital City. He tried to approach Araxamas many times on the battlefield, even unknowingly saving his life from a Troll Headhunter, yet Araxamas refused to be associated with the Silver Hand. Following the war, reconciliation became impossible when the Knights of Fenris were not invited to the Victory Parade across Capital City, Araxamas and his comrades retreated into Fenris Isle and focused their attention on Alterac and loose Orcs while the Silver Hand expanded and grew in strength. Retirement Whitehall decided to leave Central Tirisfal behind, moving to Tyr's Hand in the Kingdom's north. Tyr's Hand, the Church City, was the perfect place for him to retire among those who shared his faith. Unfortunately though he found the City too crowded for his liking and moved out to the nearby countryside. He would come to settle in a Village called Taelbrad a little north of the City. It had a small population of hunters and farmers along with a Chapel. Whitehall aided in the services held at the Chapel, helped heal the sick, and on numerous occasions helped soldiers capture bandits, trolls and anything else nearby. It was a nice life for Whitehall and he enjoyed continuing to use the Light for peaceful purposes like healing and prayer rather than war. The Scourge of Lordaeron After Arthas left for Northrend, the Undead in the Plaguelands quickly began to grow in number, moving from village to village, like a fire the Undead spread across northern Lordaeron, a fire that inevitably reached Taelbrad. There was no way the lightly populated Village could defend itself, those that could fled to the Chapel as a refuge. Whitehall alone stood in the doorway, holding countless numbers of Undead back. Not a single Undead would taint his chapel while he still breathed, but before he realised, they had broken the windows and swarmed inside. The Villagers fell before Whitehall could protect them, these people who had become his only friends, now fell before his eyes. In that moment, he called out to the Light, called to it for Justice, and it answered, he felt the Light more strongly than he had ever felt before... The Argent Dawn Maxwell Tyrosus and his forces moved East from Hearthglen hoping to settle a new base of operations for their newly formed Argent Dawn, he surveyed Darrowshire and Blackwood Village but found them too difficult to defend in the long term. Then he arrived at Taelbrad, or what was left of it. Only the Chapel was left standing among countless Undead bodies. Inside the Chapel, Maxwell found Whitehall, peacefully reading from his tome, before him were many corpses all covered in blankets, flowers, and belongings. Maxwell did not know how the Paladin had survived alone, starving in the Chapel all that time. But he felt the Light's presence more strongly at the Chapel than anywhere else in his life, and felt it was the perfect place to act as the new Headquarters for the Argent Dawn. The Chapel was dubbed Light's Hope Chapel due to it's strong connection with The Light. First Siege of Light's Hope Chapel The Scourge was not blind to the forces assembling at Light's Hope Chapel, and their spies soon learned of the valuable corpses being protected beneath it. Kel'Thuzad amassed his forces and marched. The meager force of defenders could not hope to defend the Chapel for long, fortunately Darion Mograine would sacrifice himself and unleash the dormant power of the Light within the Chapel and the spirits that it protected, decimating the entire Undead horde save for powerful Undead such as Kel'Thuzad. Whitehall contributed greatly in the battle, but his contribution was slim compared to the sacrifice of his comrade. The Siege of Sanguine The Scourge once again attempted to assault the Chapel, this time lead by the Lich, Kerkessen. Whitehall again proved his worth, and his strong connection to the Light allowed him to make quick work of many of the Scourge's forces. The Scourge was forced into a retreat, with Kerkessen being wounded by Maxwell Tyrosus. The Third Siege of Light's Hope Chapel With Naxxramas overhead, the Scourge attacked once again. With no forseeable way to repel the Necropolis, the Scourge would have practically infinite reinforcements until the Chapel could be taken. Whitehall defended the Northren Gate, successfully defeating Death Knight Korth'azz, one of the Four Horsemen but with some injury to himself in the process. Whitehall returned to the Chapel, seeking a way to win the battle. In a vision, the Light showed him how, and together with other members of the Argent Dawn, explosives were hurled at the Necropolis, which combined with the intense wind summoned by Argent Shamans, was enough to force it's retreat. Traits and Characteristics Whitehall despite having no official rank in the Dawn, is still deeply respected, especially among the Humans of the camp, and is a close friend and advisor to Maxwell Tyrosus. Despite his lack of rank, his deep respect and closeness to Maxwell essentially makes him one of the most senior members of the Argent Dawn. Whitehall, despite his senior position, still holds a level of doubt to trusting the races of the Horde, especially Undead. His apparent racism was made even more apparent when members of the Horde accused Whitehall of murdering two Orcs. Whitehall is otherwise a man of great conviction and patience, similar in many respects to Uther the Lightbringer. His connection to the Light is unparralelled among the Argent Dawn and Scarlet Crusade, in such a way many see his faith to be on a similar level to the late Alonsus Faol whose very presence was enough to warm a room. Although Whitehall doesn't have that ability, the Holy wrath he inflicts upon the Undead is unlike anything seen previously. He explains the bizzare strength to be part of the Light's will to protect the Chapel, and that he is just a conduit for that will.